1. Field
The present invention relates to an apparatus for blocking water, for example, as used in motor vehicles to protect certain parts, such as the engine from getting wet. More particularly, the present invention relates to a vehicle component capable of blocking water and other substances from entering the engine, for example, while the vehicle is in operation. Furthermore, another potential benefit may be achieved when the water blocking component is coupled to an engine cooling component or the water blocking component is configured to act as an engine cooling component.
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumers may purchase motor vehicles such as cars, trucks and vans for a number of reasons. This list of reasons may include “looks” or how attractive a vehicle is in the eyes of the purchaser. It follows then that vehicle design and manufacturing companies attempt to make vehicles that offer, among other benefits, an attractive exterior. So, in order to sell more vehicles, car manufacturing companies are inclined to design a more attractive vehicle. To achieve this end, vehicles that have a larger grille have been determined to be more attractive to a significant portion of the purchasing public. However, another important factor in attracting customers is reliability. To this end, protecting the engine of a vehicle so that the vehicle may continue to run is well understood by most drivers to be of the utmost importance. In other words, most drivers even with the most basic understanding of vehicles would know that keeping a vehicle's engine in a functional state is important. Along this vein, much advancement has been made to protect the engine in a number of different scenarios. For example, upon detection of impact collisions, some engines are designed to drop beneath the vehicle and out of harms way before taking on damage. However, one area of engine protection that has not been fully developed is how to protect the engine when the vehicle is in, for example, a very wet environment where floods may occur frequently.
Based on the above, vehicles with large grilles and reliable engine performance thus are desirable commercially. However, one drawback to incorporating a larger grille is that the surface area of the grille is increased for which water may be able to find its way through the grille. If water should travel into the engine in an unintended way, the consequences may be severe. For example, the engine may cease to function and the driver may have to spend a large sum of money to buy a functional engine and replace the non-functional engine.
One solution currently practiced is to place the air intake duct leading into the engine inside the interior of the engine compartment. However, by moving the air intake duct to the interior of the engine compartment, the engine intake air is heated and performance of the vehicle may be decreased, and in particular, engine life or performance may be compromised.